Weight advice needed

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Sue25

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My Highland Ponys weight Is around 470kg she's 14.2 not very muscly yet trying to improve that !!! Shes chunky but not fat.. Vet told me to shift some more weight... :-/
 
Pictures would be better for people to to give honest advice. Highlands vary considerably in substance and for some that weight would be fat and others not!
 
If your vet says the pony is overweight, I think, rather than trying to 2nd guess this, you should put it on a diet asap.
I have found that feeding haylage at the rate of 1.5% of the desired bodyweight and topping the forage up with oat straw chaff is a very effective way of reducing weight. I strongly dislike haynets so simply feed from the floor. The feed is split into 3 - 1/4 to come in to, 1/4 about 8.00pm and 1/2 at midnight.
 
I'm not 2nd guessing anything simply asking for other Highland owners weight advice, she gets 2 small soaked nets a day fed off he floor !! a handful of chaf only to get a supplement in and is out for 4 hrs.. :-)
 
I'd weigh the hay you give her (before soaking) so you have a clearer idea of how much she is eating. What is the pasture she goes out on like? Can you strip graze, set up a 'paddock paradise' or use a grazing muzzle to slow down her grass intake?

How much work does she do? Can you increase the frequency and intensity of it?
 
She is such a good doer she get hardly anything, the grass were I am is very rich during spring summer so she will be restricted tried a mussel and it didn't stay on long !! Work wise she prob get 2 days off a wk sometimes only 1 mainly hacking work but plenty of hills this will increase tho, had a tuff couple of months after being sold a faulty saddle but hopefully all sorted now :-) thanks
 
I think part of your problem is if he is only getting 4 hours turnout and say you ride for an hour that would mean she is standing inactive for 19 hours a day not using up any energy and being in a warm stable.

Is she is rugged? Could she have more turnout so she is moving about more?
 
She's get out all days at weekends but mon to fri it's roughly 4 hrs, during spring and summer she will still only get out for 4 he's due to the grass being very rich.. She has a fleece at night and sometimes a light turnout during the day :-)
 
I would personally leave her out more but muzzled she will be using up more energy and fat walking around that being stood still.
 
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